So far today has not been very productive. I’ve been up for hours and despite spending much of that in my craft studio have struggled to create anything. It’s like my creative brain has been replaced with tumble weed. So I did what I usually do when my creativity takes a nap, I just start playing with whatever’s at hand. It was while doing something completely different with the Sunflowers Dies that my eyes fell on two of the smaller dies. Finally it sparked an idea but instead of sunflowers I saw wheat. A sheaf of wheat in fact…

WHEAT STEMS

Using the two wheat (leaf?) stems from the Sunflowers Dies I cut out some So Saffron Card. One of the dies is a single stem and I cut four of those. Then I cut two using the double stem die.

Next, placing the die-cut pieces on the desk I decided to add a little colour and texture. So using pieces of Stampin’ Sponge I tapped Crushed Curry ink at the top, and Pear Pizzazz ink at the bottom. Then I layered the stems on top of each other and fixed them just at the top of the Pear Pizzazz section using Multipurpose Liquid Glue (Tombow).

Although the sheaf was assembled with the tops of the wheat loose it still needed finishing off. For that I wrapped some Linen Thread a few times around the centre and then tied a simple bow. Now it looked much better.

THANKS TAG

I was pleased with how the wheat sheaf turned out but then had to decide what to do next. In the end I thought I’d use it to embellish a gift tag.

Rather than have a plain base for the tag I wanted to create a simple landscape using two colours of card. For this I used the #4 (largest) oval die in the Stitched Shapes Dies. I actually used it three times, cutting one each from Seaside Spray, Pear Pizzazz and Very Vanilla Card.

To make the landscape effect I began by stacking the Seaside Spray and Pear Pizzazz ovals on top of each other. Next using my Paper Snips I cut a wave through the centre of both pieces. Then I discarded the bottom part of the Seaside Spray oval and the top of the Pear Pizzazz one. Finally using liquid glue I assembled the two remaining pieces on the back of the Very Vanilla Oval. By cutting them at the same time I knew the assembled pieces would fit together perfectly.

Before going any further I punched a hole at the top of the tag using the oval hole option on the Detailed Trio Punch. Then I threaded some Linen Thread through the hole and tied it in a simple knot.

With the landscape done I added the wheat sheaf to the left side with more liquid glue. That just left the sentiment.

Looking at the coordinating Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set I decided to use a simple “thanks” sentiment. All I needed to do was take the “thanks a bunch” stamp and ink up just the “thanks” part using Pear Pizzazz ink. Then I stamped it onto a narrow strip of Very Vanilla Card.

Using my Paper Snips I cut a V in the end of the strip to create a pennant shape . Then to add the effect of movement I pulled the strip between my thumb and a Bone Folder and added a curve to the card.

To finish off I glued one end of the sentiment under a leaf and attached the other end onto the ‘grass’.

Finally I had a finished project to show you today. Now all I have to do is go back to the various projects I started before that and try to finish them off too. Wish me luck. Or send chocolate. Or both…

PRODUCT LIST

BUNDLE BONUS – I bought the Celebrate Sunflowers Stamp Set and coordinating Sunflowers Dies using a single ‘bundle’ item number. This meant I saved 10% off the cost of buying the two items separately. I’ve included a link to both the individual items and the bundle so you can compare the options.

You can also get this bundle or any other stamp set/tool bundle for free as part of the June joining offer. See my Join Stampin’ Up! page for more information.